Page 153 of Resisting Isaac
He chuckles. “You think I’m just gonna hand that over to you? Out of the goodness of my heart?”
“I don’t think you have a heart. Or a soul. But I think you’re scared,” I say. “As you should be. You’re in a dangerous cell block with the most violent offenders. And I think you'd like to live long enough to see the outside again.”
His cocky grin fades just enough to let the truth slip through. I press my advantage while I have it.
“My brother-in-law is a Navy SEAL. Still active in the Teams. Still has people on the inside. Connections, like you. He can make your life in here much more comfortable or much more difficult.”
Diego sits back, propping his elbows on the small counter in front of him. “That a threat, Mrs. Logan?”
“It’s just the facts, Mr. Torres. Plain and simple.” I show him the palms of my hands. “You want to move to the cushy population with the finance guys who scammed people out of their retirement plans instead of stabbing them to death intheir sleep? Or are you getting attached to that big ol’ roommate of yours?”
He only stares at me with narrowed eyes as if he’s calculating the odds of me using my acting chops to fake him out or having the kind of power to make a difference for him.
“This is a one-time only offer. I’m not ever stepping foot in this hellhole again. I thought maybe we could help each other out.” I stand to leave as if I couldn’t care less. “But if you’re not interested?—”
“Wait.”
His voice stops me cold. I sit back down
He scrubs a hand over his face, looks behind him like the guard might be eavesdropping. “Can you really get me into a safer cell block?”
“I can absolutely try,” I say carefully. “Depends on what you give me.”
Diego leans in, voice low. “There were these two guys, posing as drifters looking for work. Some old guy hired them as ranch hands after your worm food father-in-law told them to get lost. They were pros. Paid hitters.”
My chest goes tight. “And?”
He frowns. “And someone paid them to take Jack Logan out. I tracked them down, tried to follow the money but they didn’t know where it came from. Fucking morons. It’s a wonder they got the job done. It was wired through a shell corporation. Offshore. Doesn’t exist anymore. If I hadn’t gotten arrested and thrown in this godforsaken place, I might have found the answer for you.”
“Gee, Diego, I’m sorry my husband didn’t let you rape and maim me.”
He rolls his eyes. “I wasn’t going to fucking maim you. You would’ve enjoyed what we did. You know how you are.Acting all prim and proper in those shitty movies but you’re really just another whore.”
“So, you really don’t know who hired them? Or are you trying to save something for later, like a bargaining chip?” I stare into his flat black eyes, refusing to let him know how vile his words make me feel inside. “I meant what I said. This is your last shot to give me something worth getting a Logan brother to help you.”
He shrugs. Shows me his cuffed hands. “All I know is whoever it was, they wanted Jack Logan gone bad enough to hire professionals and covered their tracks. They paid those boys half a mil. Said there would be more if they could ensure the ranch went under and the land went to auction.”
Isaac said he and his brothers suspected it was about the land. Said a wealthy developer had been making aggressive offers.
“What are their names?”
“Whose names?”
I scoot my chair back. “You’re out of time to play dumb.” I point at the large led screen countdown clock behind him. Visiting hours are ending in mere minutes.
“Names were fuckin’ weird. Cane…no, Cage and Roan. They were brothers or cousins or something. Last name was a fake, but they blew the money in a casino and a strip club in Vegas and got arrested there. Both of them had a bunch of aliases. Someone bailed them out and killed them before I could get any further.”
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
Vegas. As in Las Vegas where Isaac’s brother, Caleb, has likely been researching his dad’s killer on his own and was recently put into a coma.
It could be a coincidence. Or something much more sinister.
Either way, I have to get to Isaac. Tell him all of this while it’s fresh in my mind.
“Hey,” Diego calls after me as I turn to leave, “You’re going to tell them I cooperated, right? Right?” He smacks the plexiglass several times causing the guard to step over and stand him up. He keeps yelling. “Tell that brother-in-law of yours I’m worth keeping alive. When I get out, I can help track down whoever put a hit out on their dad.”
I turn to stare into the eyes of the man I thought was my childhood friend as a prison guard restrains him.
